Prey localization by surface wave ray-tracing: fish track bugs like oceanographers track storms

Surface-feeding fish accurately determine direction and distance to the center of a concentric wave stimulus, even if only a single, short lasting wave train is presented. It has been suggested that one cue used by these fish to localize the wave center is the distance dependent frequency modulation of the initial part of a wave stimulus. Here we show how the distance information contained in the fractional frequency change of a capillary wave group can be decoded. We suggest that wave source localization in surface-feeding fish in part is based on a principal similar to that used by oceanographers to track storms by the frequency change of forerunners of swell.     

The cephalopod heart: The evolution of a high-performance invertebrate pump

Cephalopods typically have high metabolic rates. They have blood in which the oxygen carrier is haemocyanin, a pigment that is found only in solution and which never seems to be present in concentrations that will transport more than 4–5 vols % of oxygen. Their hearts must in consequence have very high cardiac outputs. In this account the performance of the heart ofNautilus, the only surviving ectocochleate, is contrasted with the performance of the hearts of coleoids,Octopus which has a relatively low metabolic rate (for a coleoid) and squids which have very high oxygen uptakes by any standards. In all these animals, heartbeat frequency is temperature-dependent and the additional oxygen demand in exercise is met very largely by a 2–3-fold increase in stroke volume. With the exception ofNautilus, cephalopods tend to utilise nearly all of the oxygen transported in the blood even at rest; they show very limited factorial scopes. Specific power output has, however, increased dramatically from 2.7 mWg^–1 in an activeNautilus to 5.5 mWg^–1 inOctopus and up to 20 or 30 mWg^–1 in species ofLoligo. The increase is almost entirely due to a 10-fold increase in heartbeat frequency. It is argued that frequency cannot be used as a means of responding to extra demand in an animal that must also carry automatic compensation for changes in metabolic rate dependent upon the ambient temperature, and that the use of frequency in some squid may be associated with a reduced temperature tolerance. Cephalopod systemic hearts do not scale directly with body mass, like the hearts of fish and the higher vertebrates. Smaller cephalopods have relatively larger hearts (as Mass^0.9). A typical 100-g coleoid would have a heart mass of 0.15 g. Oegopsid squids appear to be exceptional with hearts twice as large.     

Electrocorticographic activity induced by gamma hydroxybutyrate in the rat during ontogenesis

Summary GHB at a dose of 200 mg·kg^–1 i.p. elicited groups of slow waves with a frequency of 4–5 Hz in both frontal and occipital ECoG leads in adult rats. In 25- and 18-day-old rats similar slow wave activity became continuous and exhibited a clear-cut maximum in the frontal regions. In 15- and 12-day-old animals slow wave activity was also registered in the frontal region but it was organized into short groups of unstable frequency. No ECoG effects of GHB could be found in 9-day-old rats.     

The lack of an effect of cholinergic agonists on anterior pituitary prolactin production in vitro

Summary The addition of dopamine to anterior pituitary incubations resulted in a marked decrease (88% for³H prolactin and 69% for RIA prolactin) in prolactin release. Incubation with the cholinergic agonists carbacol, arecoline and nicotine resulted in no significant change in prolactin secretion.Supported in part by NSF Research grant No. BMS 74-17332.The authors appreciate receiving as a gift from the National Institute of Arthritis, Metabolic and Digestive Diseases, the rat prolactin used for iodination (RP-I₂) and standards (RP-1).     

The jump ofOrchestia cavimana Heller, 1865 (Crustacea,Amphipoda, Talitridae)

Summary The saltatory locomotion of the Talitrid (Crustacea)Orchestia cavimana Heller, 1865, was studied by high frequency cinematography (1000 fps). The jump lasts about 350–400 msec and covers a distance of 18 cm due to an average acceleration of 300 m/sec². About 4–6 somersaults are performed in the course of each jump.Thanks are due to Prof. Dr R. Altevogt for guidance, encouragement and translating the German text.     

Seasonal changes in the uptake capacity of the suprachiasmatic nucleus for3H-serotonin

Summary The suprachiasmatic nucleus, a hypothalamic center important in mediation of circadian and estrous cycles, is shown in adult rats to have seasonal changes in its uptake capacity in vitro for³H-serotonin.Supported in part by grants from the National Institute of Mental Health (MH-25091), the National Institute of Health (HD-10263, HD-03352, 5-T01-HD00104-10), USPHS, and the Ford Foundation (grant No. 630-0505 B, C).     

HCO 3 − -ATPase activity distribution in rat liver cell fractions prepared by zonal centrifugation

Summary Plasma membrane sheets prepared by zonal centrifugation of a premicrosomal pellet obtained from a rat liver homogenate are devoid of HCO ₃ ^– -ATPase activity. Since the microsomal fraction is also lacking in this ATPase activity, it can be concluded that the HCO ₃ ^– -ATPase is not involved in the secretion of HCO ₃ ^– into bile. Acknowledgments. This investigation was supported in part by grants No. DE-02600 and AM 80686 from the United States Public Health Service. The A-XII zonal rotor is used under subcontract No. 3796 with the Union Carbide Corporation.     

Asscorbic acid portects against male infertility in a teleost fish

An animal unable to synthesize ascorbic acid uniquely minicks human and non-human primates. Therefore, in this study we used the rainbow trout, a teleost fish, as the model animal to study the importance of dietary ascorbic acid on the fertilizing ability of sperm. A high concentration of ascorbic acid in semen plays a key role in maintaining the genetic integrity of sperm cells, by preventing oxidative damage to sperm DNA. This study will show that the concentration of asorbic acid in seminal plasma refelcts the dietary fed either an ascorbate-free diet (from 4.74±0.9 to 0.16±0.08 g ml^–1) or an ascorbate-rich diet (from 37.9±4.7 to 17.7± 3.2 g ml^–1) during the sperimnation season. The relationship between ascrobate status and fertility was studied in six groups of fish fed graded levels of ascorbic acid, which sperimated over a 150-day-period. Sperm from individual males was used to fertilize several batches of eggs. When the seminal plasma ascorbate concentration decreased to 7.3 g ml^–1 a significant decrease of fertilization rate and the hatching rate of embryos resulted. This is the first evidence that dietary ascorbate level directly affected sperm quality and influenced male fertility in a scruvy-prone vertebrate.     

Variations de salinité chez la Tanche (Tinca tinca L.): Effet de la vagotomie sur l'intensité respiratoire et la teneur en eau et cations (Na+ et K+) du tissu hépatique

Summary Vagus nerve section was performed on a stenohaline species: the tench (Tinca tinca L.). The oxygen consumption and Na⁺ content increased in both tap water and after transfer to salt water. It is suggested that the vagus nerve plays a role in water and electrolyte flux in this fish.     

Differential sensitivity of amphibian nodal and paranodal K+ channels to 4-aminopyridine and TEA

Summary Voltage-dependent K⁺ channels are blocked by several drugs, including 4-aminopyridine (4-AP) and tetraethylammonium (TEA). 4-AP is most widely used to localize K⁺ channels in mammalian and non-mammalian nerve fibers, but 4-AP and TEA alter various K⁺ channels and/or preparations in specific ways. The reason is not known, in part because dissociation constants for 4-AP and TEA have not been measured for nodal and internodal K⁺ channels in the same fibers. Smith and Schauf showed that the density of nodal versus paranodal K⁺ channels in frog nerves depends on fiber diameter. This size dependence was used to determine the relative sensitivity of nodal and internodal K⁺ channels to 4-AP and TEA, and to compare voltage- and time-dependent activation. The results show nodal and internodal K⁺ channels activate similarly. However, internodal channels are selectivity blocked by 4-AP while TEA is more effective on nodal channels. A high sensitivity of internodal K⁺ channels may explain why 4-AP improves symptoms in diseases such as multiple sclerosis.     

The effect of nifedipine and verapamil on KCl-induced rhythmic contractions of guinea pig ureter in vitro

Summary Addition of KCl (40 mM) produced rhythmic contractions of guinea-pig ureters in vitro which were unaffected by phentolamine, atropine or tetrodotoxin.KCl failed to elicit rhythmic contractions of ureters incubated in a Krebs solution with no added Ca⁺⁺; in these conditions the addition of CaCl₂ in concentrations of 1.5 mM, or higher, produced rhythmic contractions whose frequency, but not amplitude, was proportional to CaCl₂ concentration in the bathing medium.EDTA reduced the frequency of KCl-induced rhythmic contractions without affecting their amplitude. Nifedipine and verapamil reduced both the frequency and the amplitude of KCl-induced rhythmic contraction; verapamil was more effective than nifedipine in reducing their amplitude.Urethane reduced the amplitude without significantly affecting the frequency of KCl-induced rhythmic contractions. An increase in the extracellular Ca⁺⁺ concentration reverted the suppressive effect of all drugs under study. These results suggest that an influx of Ca⁺⁺ from the extracellular space is responsible for the initiation of KCl-induced rhythmic contractions and is involved in the mechanism(s) which regulates their frequency, but that a separate mechanism regulates their amplitude.     

Effect of pulsing electromagnetic fields on DNA synthesis in mammalian cells in culture

Summary DNA synthesis in Chinese hamster V79 cells was significantly enhanced when they were exposed to weak, pulsing electromagnetic fields generated by specific combinations of the pulse width (25s), frequency (10, 100 Hz) and magnetic intensity (2×10^–5 8×10^–5T). Conversely the DNA synthesis of cells in the fields at 4×10^–4 T was repressed to 80% of that in controls not exposed to the fields.This work was supported by Kaken Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd, Tokyo, Japan, and in part by a Grant-in-Aid from the Ministry of Education, Science and Culture of Japan and from the Foundation for Life Science Promotion Tokyo, Japan to I.K.     

Collective cell migration has distinct directionality and speed dynamics

When a constraint is removed, confluent cells migrate directionally into the available space. How the migration directionality and speed increase are initiated at the leading edge and propagate into neighboring cells are not well understood. Using a quantitative visualization technique—Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV)—we revealed that migration directionality and speed had strikingly different dynamics. Migration directionality increases as a wave propagating from the leading edge into the cell sheet, while the increase in cell migration speed is maintained only at the leading edge. The overall directionality steadily increases with time as cells migrate into the cell-free space, but migration speed remains largely the same. A particle-based compass (PBC) model suggests cellular interplay (which depends on cell–cell distance) and migration speed are sufficient to capture the dynamics of migration directionality revealed experimentally. Extracellular Ca²⁺ regulated both migration speed and directionality, but in a significantly different way, suggested by the correlation between directionality and speed only in some dynamic ranges. Our experimental and modeling results reveal distinct directionality and speed dynamics in collective migration, and these factors can be regulated by extracellular Ca²⁺ through cellular interplay. Quantitative visualization using PIV and our PBC model thus provide a powerful approach to dissect the mechanisms of collective cell migration.     

The effect of chronic heat stress on cortisol levels in the antarctic fishPagothenia borchgrevinki

Radioimmunoassay was used to determine levels of the stress-inducible glucocorticoid, cortisol, circulating in the plasma of the extremely stenothermal Antarctic fishPagothenia borchgrevinki at rest and after heat stress. Fish sampled immediately after capture (–1.9°C) had low cortisol levels (10.4±1.4 ng ml^–1, mean±SEM) as did fish which were laboratory rested for 3 days. Sudden exposure to 5°C (48h) resulted in a peak cortisol value after 3 h (69.9±6.8 ng ml^–1) whereas exposure to 8°C (6h) resulted in a peak value after 1 h (73.5±8.0 ng ml^–1). At both temperatures levels remained significantly elevated (p<0.05) for the entire period of exposure. Increased temperature also resulted in a significant change in haemoglobin, haematocrit and mean cell haemoglobin concentration (MCHC) (p<0.05). Plasma lactate was significantly elevated only after exposure to 8°C (p<0.05). Plasma cortisol levels fromP. borchgrevinki are reported here for the first time and show this cryopelagic Antarctic species to have an unusual hormonal stress profile.     

Sexual behavior mutants revisited: molecular and cellular basis of Drosophila mating

The study of Drosophila melanogaster by a combination of forward genetics with specific mutants, and reverse genetics, in which a given gene is expressed in an appropriate brain area to test its effect on behavior, provides a unique opportunity to explore the causal relationship between a particular gene, its function in the cell and the behavioral outcome at the organismic level. Enhanced male-to-male courtship has been shown to occur as a result of mutations in several different genes. For example, the Voila mutant exhibits intense GAL4 reporter expression in the tarsal gustatory sensilla, suggesting the importance of tapping by a male on the female abdomen with his forelegs. Feminization of parts of the antennal lobe and mushroom body by targeted expression of a female-determining gene transformer ⁺ (tra ⁺) drives the male to court other males. Mutations in the tra target gene fruitless (fru), which is expressed in the antennal lobe as well as the suboesophageal ganglion (the gustatory inputs are processed here), also induce homosexual courtship in males. These results suggest that sensory inputs mediated and/or processed by the tarsal receptors, suboesophageal ganglion, antennal lobe and mushroom body contribute to the regulation of male–female courtship. Mosaic analysis localized the neural center for male courtship behavior to the posterior dorsal brain, in which the sensory information processed by the aforementioned neural structures may be integrated. Another mosaic study mapped the neural center for female sexual behavior, as measured by her receptiveness to copulation, to the anterior dorsal brain. The issue as to how the mutations that reduce female sexual receptiveness, e.g. dissatisfaction (dsf), spinster (spin) and chaste (cht), affect the structure and/or function of this neural center deserves to be addressed urgently. Received 27 April 1999; received after revision 21 June 1999; accepted 8 July 1999     

Cone mosaic in a teleost retina: No difference between light and dark adapted states

Summary The mosaic arrangement of retinal cones in the eye of the African cichlid fish,Haplochromis burtoni, is the same in both light and dark adapted states. This is in contrast to Kunz' claim² that the retinal mosaic pattern changes from a square to a row type during dark adaptation, in the guppy (Poecelia reticulata). Kunz' histological procedure may account for this difference in results.Acknowledgments. This work was supported by grants from the Whitehall Foundation and NIH EY02284. I thank L. Shelton for expert histological assistance.     

双块式无砟轨道温度场试验研究和数值分析

为较准确掌握无砟轨道温度场的分布规律,建立无砟轨道温度与环境温度的对应关系,为温度应力的计算和无砟轨道设计提供基础参数,本文测试了双块式无砟轨道不同部件、不同位置的温度和环境温度变化情况,建立有限元模型对无砟轨道温度场进行了数值模拟和对比.实测数据及数值模拟的结果均表明:道床板温度随外界气温呈以日为周期的周期性变化,秋季平均每天的升温时间约为8 h,降温约16 h;由于热交换条件的差异,距轨道表面越远,轨道温度受环境气温的影响越小,道床板角部的温度变化幅度大于中部,支撑层与基床表层的温度变化幅度很小;道床板内存在较大的温度梯度,随着距表面距离的增大,温度梯度逐渐减小,至支撑层时温度梯度可忽略不计;采用有限元模拟的方法获取无砟轨道温度随气温变化规律是可行的.     

Dantrolene and the effect of temperature on the spontaneous release of transmitter at the frog neuromuscular junction

Summary The characteristic effect of temperature on m.e.p.p. frequency at the amphibian neuromuscular junction is unaltered by the presence of Dantrolene (an agent that is believed to reduce the efflux of Ca²⁺ from intracellular stores) or by changes in [Ca²⁺]_o. It is concluded that temperature affects the release system directly, with a transition temperature at about 16°C.     

Comparative analysis of phospholamban phosphorylation in crude membranes of vertebrate hearts

Summary Phospholamban, a sarcoplasmic reticulum phosphoprotein, is present in the hearts of mammalian, avian, amphibian, and fish species. Phylogenetic changes are indicated by marked differences among species in cardiac phospholamban content and by the absence of Ca²⁺/calmodulin-dependent phospholamban phosphorylation at an early developmental stage.     

Accessibility of host cell lineages to medaka stem cells depends on genetic background and irradiation of recipient embryos

Chimera formation is a powerful tool for analyzing pluripotency in vivo. It has been widely accepted that host cell lineages are generally accessible to embryonic stem (ES) cells with the actual contribution depending solely on the intrinsic pluripotency of transplanted donor cells. Here, we show in the fish medaka (Oryzias latipes) that the host accessibility to ES cell contribution exhibits dramatic differences. Specifically, of three albino host strains tested (i ¹ , i ³ and af), only strain i ¹ generated pigmented chimeras. Strikingly, this accessibility is completely lost in i ¹ but acquired in i ³ after host γ-irradiation. Host irradiation also differentially affected ES cell contribution to somatic organs and gonad. Therefore, the accessibility of various host cell lineages can vary considerably depending on host strains and cell lineages as well as on irradiation. Our findings underscore the importance of host genotypes for interpreting donor cell pluripotency and for improving ES-derived chimera production.